Developed by Raoul Eshelman
Reaction against postmodern irony and scepticism
Emphasis on belief, trust, and transcendence
Promotes unified aesthetic experiences — Raoul Eshelman’s concept of performatism presents several key themes and ideas:
Emphasises a return to transcendence in art and culture.
Replaces postmodern irony with imposed belief.
Encourages identification with characters and narratives.
Utilises “double framing” to guide viewer interpretation.
Forces acceptance of a work’s internal logic.
Creates a unified experience within the artwork.
Preserves the subject as a holistic, irreducible unit.
Contrasts with postmodern fragmentation and skepticism.
Offers an optimistic alternative to postmodern nihilism.
Focuses on aesthetics that evoke metaphysical concepts like love and beauty. These ideas position performatism as a cultural paradigm that seeks to transcend postmodernism through structured, belief-driven experiences.
Belief vs. Irony: Performatism replaces postmodern irony and skepticism with a focus on belief and transcendence, encouraging identification with positive values like love and beauty.
Subjectivity: It preserves the subject as a holistic, irreducible unit, contrasting with postmodernism’s fragmentation and displacement of the subject.
Cultural Approach: Performatism is optimistic and seeks to create new experiences through constructed states, whereas postmodernism often embraces pessimism and nihilism.
Artistic Expression: It uses formal means to engage audiences emotionally and intellectually, moving away from postmodern eclecticism and relativism.
Focus on unity and holistic subjectivity.
Use of coercive framing to guide interpretation.
Encourages identification with characters or situations.
Moves away from postmodern fragmentation.
Emphasises transcending materiality and reality.
Constructs emotional states like happiness and love.
Characters experience profound, involuntary transformations.
Seeks to create new, meaningful experiences.
Presents dense, opaque subjectivity.
Subjects are constructed rather than pre-existing.
Encourages singular, unique perspectives.
Balances between individual unity and social participation.
Engages viewers emotionally and intellectually.
Uses aesthetic devices to create compelling narratives.
Moves beyond irony to sincere belief and transcendence.
Invites audiences to participate in transformative experiences. Performatist architecture and postmodern architecture differ in several key aspects:
Transcendence: Seeks to transcend materiality through techniques like transparency and dematerialisation.
Unity and Wholeness: Emphasises holistic structures, often using egg-shaped forms to suggest closure.
Architect’s Presence: Highlights the architect’s will, creating a sense of awe and dynamic tension.
Kinesis and Impendency: Uses elements like kinetic devices to suggest movement and precariousness.
Eclecticism: Combines elements from various styles and historical references, creating a diverse aesthetic.
Ornamentation: Incorporates decorative details and playful design elements, often with irony.
Cultural References: Engages with historical and cultural contexts, emphasising pluralism.
Double Coding: Communicates on multiple levels, appealing to both experts and the general public.
Darmstadt Artists’ Colony, Mathildenhöhe
Located in Darmstadt, Germany.
Features a prototype of modernism with 23 different buildings.
Influenced by the Vienna Secession and Arts and Crafts Movement.
Includes the Wedding Tower and Russian Chapel of St. Maria Magdalena.
Emphasises artistic exploration and communal living. Waldspirale, Darmstadt
Designed by Friedensreich Hundertwasser.
Remarkably colourful social housing with a green roof.
Incorporates extensive sunlight and environmental considerations.
Experiments with new and unusual aesthetics.
These examples highlight performatism’s focus on transcending materiality and fostering unique, holistic experiences through architecture.
The Darmstadt Artists’ Colony reflects performatist principles through several key features:
Emphasises the concept of gesamtkunstwerk (total work of art), integrating architecture, design, and art into a cohesive whole.
Encourages a unified artistic vision across various mediums.
Creates immersive, artistically curated living spaces.
Buildings and interiors are designed as complete artistic expressions.
Aims to reform arts and crafts, promoting modern, forward-looking designs.
Incorporates influences from movements like Vienna Secession and Arts and Crafts.
Fosters a communal living environment for artists to collaborate and innovate.
Supports shared artistic goals and mutual inspiration among members.